Innovation is at the heart of making change. No community, state, nation, or society will be able to jump without innovation
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Innovation is at the heart or foundation of bringing about changes in any aspect of life, according to Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian.

"Innovation is at the heart of making change. No community, state, nation, or society will be able to jump without innovation," Karnavian stated at the 2022 Innovative Government Award (IGA) here on Friday.

As time progresses, there are external and internal factors that cannot be contained, such as globalization, the minister pointed out.

According to Karnavian, every country must survive amid the competitive climate that is getting tougher, in addition to the developments in information technology (IT).

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"That (IT) made the third wave of revolutionary change happen. Hence, Indonesia must also innovate in the international competitive climate," he remarked.

In terms of internal factors, he highlighted that since 1999, the Indonesian government is no longer centralized but has switched to decentralization or giving more autonomy to the regions.

In the era before implementing regional autonomy, he explained, the government was very centralized, from top to bottom, which did not provide a wide space for the region to innovate outside the existing corridors.

Currently, the decentralized government system gives greater space to regions to maneuver and develop innovations based on each region's creativity.

Furthermore, with the system of direct regional head elections, regional innovations are demanded by the community to accelerate development.


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Owing to these two factors, the minister emphasized that innovation continues to be encouraged in the current government system.

The IGA bestowed on provincial and district and city administrations is a form of the central government's approach to commend the spirit and success of local governments in organizing public service and management in innovative ways.

The bestowal of IGA is expected to encourage and motivate local governments to continue to conduct regional innovations in improving public services, governance, and development in regions.


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Translator: Boyke W, Kenzu
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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